The municipality of Tupi Paulista (14,262 inhabitants in 2010; 24,465
ha) is located 660 km of São Paulo. The municipality is made of the
town of Tupi Paulista proper and of the districts of Guaraciaba
d’Oeste and Oásis.

Tupi Paulista was founded in 1941 by Lélio de Toledo Pizza e Almeida,
with the help of the engineer Francisco Cunha. The settlement was
originally named Tupy, subsequently changed for Gracianópolis. The
district of Gracianópolis was established on 30 November 1944, as part
of the municipality of Lucélia. Coffee cultivation was initiated in
1948; in the 1960s, a rural population of c. 11,000 grew 18 millions
coffee trees.
The municipality of Gracianópolis was established on 24 December 1948
and renamed Tupi Paulista on 30 December 1953.

The symbols of Tupi Paulista are prescribed in Article 2 of the
Municipal Constitution, adopted on 31 March 1990 and last amended on
20 September 2011, as "the coat of arms, the flag, the anthem and
other symbols established by Municipal Law, representing the
municipality's culture and history."

The symbols of Tupi Paulista, designed by Arcinoé Antonio Peixoto de
Faria, are prescribed by Municipal Law No. 1,066 of 29 July 1966.

The flag is blue, quartered by a white-green-white cross and a white-green-white saltire. In the middle of the flag is placed a white
rectangle charged with the municipal coat of arms.
The flag has the same dimension as the national flag, that is 9 units
x 13 units*. The dimension of the white rectangle is 4 units x 13**
units. The stripes are 2/3 of a unit***, divided into equal parts.

The design of the flag is compliant with the traditions of Portuguese
heraldry, inherited in Brazil. The coat of arms represents the
municipal government. The stripes represents the municipal power
spreading all over the municipal territory. The quarters represent the
rural estates located in the municipality.****

*The official proportions of the national flag are 7:10, which is very
close to 9:13 (0.70 vs. 0.69).
**This does not make sense
***This must be the height of each individual stripe, not of the whole
arm of the crosses.
****The usual mention "The rectangle represents the town as the seat of
the municipality" does not appear here.

The coat of arms is "A Samnitic shield surmounted by an eight-towered
mural crown argent. Argent a fess wavy azure cantoned by a caduceus
sable with snakes vert and a hunting horn sable, a chief azure a fleur-
de-lis argent. The shield supported by two branches of coffee fructed
proper. Beneath the shield a scroll azure inscribed with the motto
'TRABALHO - PAZ - PROGRESSO' [in letters argent]."

The Samnitic shield, the first style of shield introduced from France
to Portugal and inherited by the Brazilian heraldry, evokes the Latin
colonizers and main builders of the country.
The mural crown is a symbol of municipal emancipation, representing a
second-rank town, seat of a "comarca".
Argent is a symbol of peace, friendship, equity, justice and work.
The caduceus, according to Ronchetti***, belongs to heroes; raised in
wartime by heralds and envoys, the caduceus is a staff with two coiled
up snakes surmounted by two displayed wings, so that the upper part of
their bodies forms an arch. The caduceus is a mythological symbol of
Mercury, symbol of peace and friendship. The staff is a symbol of
power. The snake is a symbol of prudence, representing on the caduceus
sharpness and prudence required for eloquence. The coat of arms,
therefore, symbolizes the austere government, whose efficient acts
result in the progress of the municipality.
Sable is a symbol of strength, constancy, prudence, knowledge and
moderation.
Vert, the colour of the snakes coiled up around the caduceus, is a
symbol of civility, triumph and abundance. It is also the colour of
hope, alluding to the greening fields in spring promising profuse
harvests.
The fess wavy represents the geographic zone of river Paraná, where
the municipality is located.
The hunting horn represents cattle breeding as one of the main sources
of income of the municipality.
The chief azure with the fleur-de-lis argent represents the
municipality's patron saint, the Blessed Virgin.
The branches of coffee represent the main crops in the region.
The motto, reading "Labour - Peace - Progress" is a synthesis of the
coat of arms.

The dimensions of the coat of arms are 7 units x 8 units.

***"Caduceo", pp. 173-174 in: Giuseppe Ronchetti, "Dizionario
illustrato dei simboli; simboli, emblemi, attributi allegorie,
immagini degli dei, ecc.", Ulrico Hoepli, Milano, 1922 (available
online, http://archive.org/details/dizionarioillust00roncuoft) Peixoto is quite faithful to the source, although somewhat elliptical.
Ronchetti explains that the caduceus is a symbol of peace because
Mercury used it to pull apart two struggling snakes. Mercury added
wings to the staff because he is also the god of eloquence.
Friendship, power and prudence are not mentioned.